Category: Trusting God

Sometimes life seems upside-down. When we draw closer to God, we begin to learn and trust that He has a plan for us and we can let go of many of life’s anxieties knowing that He has our best interest at heart.

The Ultimate Water

Posted on by Wendy
Wherever we may be on the journey, God will never stop providing what we need to grow.

My hubby and I built raised beds back in the winter. We wanted to try to grow more of our own food and we wanted them to be at a height where my parents could enjoy working in them without having to bend over too far and risk injuring themselves. They still aren’t finished, but we planted anyway. We plan to install drip irrigation and ordered all of the components. Unfortunately, we have not had the time to install it.

But, God has been so good to us during this season of transition and we have had one of the wettest and coolest summers we can remember. We haven’t been required to do too much watering because of all of the rain and yet, we have been blessed with abundance. We have been cutting lettuce and picking cherry tomatoes to eat in our salads all summer. Daddy and I share stories almost daily, of the new growth we witness.

Our latest find has been tiny watermelons. The vines have been all over the place, but they are finally bearing some melons.

Our garden, even unfinished, has been a blessing.

When we have had to water, my Daddy has set up the perfect sprinkler system. He figured out just where to place it to hit most all of the beds without having to readjust much.

Last week, the typical Georgia summer appeared. It’s been dry and we have hit temperatures in the 90’s. As I was walking through the garden a couple of days ago, after work, I was alarmed to see that everything looked wilted, especially the watermelon vines.

Since Daddy had plans for the day, I set out a plan to get everything watered early the next morning. First, I realized I needed a 2nd hose. After I finally got the water going, I found that the boxes in the back weren’t getting water. When I moved the sprinkler, I still found dry spots. But, I was determined to get the much needed water on all of those wilted plants that were depending on me.

As I struggled with the hose, I was reminded that God does the same for us. When we belong to Him and are doing His work, He sends us what we need. Sometimes it’s more encouragement and blessings than we could ever hope for and sometimes we end up feeling a little wilted, but even then, He will keep reaching out to us until we have what we need to continue to grow.

After all, He sent us the ultimate living water, when He sent us Jesus. His love and provision never fails.

My garden reminds me that God will always send us what we need to thrive doing His work and that we will never be truly complete on this side of eternity. That has always been part of the plan. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too!

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

For my regular readers, I apologize for my sporadic posts. I started a new job in June and my husband and I are trying to move. I have not had much white space to write. I hope to be more settled soon!

Living with Prayerful Gratitude

Posted on by Wendy
We should never underestimate the power of prayerful gratitude.

Recently, my hubby and I, let our dogs out to run in their new home. They are used to being in a fenced in yard in a suburb, but now they have many acres in the country. Naturally, they love the freedom. It’s truly a delight to watch them run and usually, they come right back when we call. A few weeks ago, they didn’t.

We were in the middle of a serious renovation project, trying to get it completed by the time my new job started and they went missing. We stopped working and started looking for them and calling. We called and called and at some point, we split up. He went one way and I went the other.

Finally, they came running from where I was calling and I yelled to my husband that I found them.

We went back to work.

Last weekend, we were having our morning coffee and talking about our stress in this current season. We reminded each other that we know that God is with us because of all of the prayer involved in our plans and the affirmations He has continuously sent along the way.

My hubby asked me if I remembered the day when our dogs went missing. Of course I remembered.

He went on to tell me a part of the story that I didn’t know.

He said he went up towards the road to look for our pups fearful that they might have been hit by a car. He ended up in the small orchard of fruit trees that we planted in the fall. He said he stopped to look at them and was amazed at how green and healthy they all were. We planted eight and all were flourishing beyond anything we could have imagined. He said he stopped calling the dogs and said a prayer of thanks.

He said he told God that those thriving fruit trees could have only come from His blessing and humbly admitted that there was nothing in his own power that could have made them thrive the way they have and he thanked Him for providing. He then confessed that he had a lot of work to do and asked God to help us find our dogs.

He said almost immediately, I yelled that I had found them.

As he shared a previously unknown part of the story, my eyes filled with tears. I was reminded that God is always listening even when we don’t think He is. I was reminded of the power of a praying spouse, or friend or any brother or sister in Christ. I was reminded of the power of giving thanks maybe not for all circumstances, but in all circumstances. There is always something to be thankful for.

Our morning discussion gave me the encouragement I needed and reminded me of the power and peace that come from prayerful gratitude. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

Embracing the Journey

Posted on by Wendy
We may not know what the future holds, but we worship the God who does.

This past week has been extra busy for me. My hubby and I are moving back to my hometown to be closer to my parents. My last day at my job was last Friday and I will start a new job in June. We have been cleaning out our house of eighteen plus years which has been bittersweet. My kids grew up in this house and it’s filled with wonderful memories. It was such a blessing to have it when they both were sent home from college due to Covid. We all worked from home that spring and into summer and I’ll have to admit, I will always treasure the extra time I got to spend with them.

But, with two college graduates, our house now feels too big.

My hubby and I have known for some time that we would like to downsize and live more simply. I was flipping through one of my journals a couple of weeks ago and saw that on New Year’s Day 2020, I wrote about wanting to live more simply and have a big garden to help us live more independently.

Honestly, the entry filled me with tears of gratitude. I had forgotten all about the little seed that God had planted in my heart well before we had ever even heard of Covid. My desire grew more intensely during the pandemic, but that wasn’t where it was born. I had no idea what was coming, but God did and He was busy preparing.

I had no idea that the sleepy little rural town where we raised our kiddos would be overrun with growth due to the pandemic or that builders from out of town would aspire to build a house on every available strip of grass, but God knew. He knew about the extra traffic. He knew we would be ready for a slower pace and He prepared a way.

I had no idea that my hubby and I would both feel called to move and to start our next chapter in a new town, but God knew and He prepared both of our hearts.

It’s hard not to be a little nostalgic as I sort through old boxes filled with toys and my children’s art. I am so very thankful for God’s blessings on our story up until this point, but since He has called us somewhere else, my faith tells me that He is still working and writing new chapters for us. My job is to pray, trust, listen and follow His lead.

My Daddy has helped us plant the big garden I wrote about three years ago. We already have tiny tomatoes and squash. Daddy grew up farming and his skills are really appreciated now. God was preparing him too.

I pray for the new family who will live in this house. I pray that they will make beautiful memories and when I am tempted to look backwards instead of forwards, I pray that God will remind me that we are all travelers here and that as long as I am on this side of eternity, my story is still in progress and so is yours. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

 

The Desire to Be Known

Posted on by Wendy
Jesus knows your story.

We live in a society where everyone wants to be known. One quick scroll through social media and we find everything from people’s vacation photos to what they cooked last night for dinner. There’s certainly nothing wrong with sharing photos and milestones on social media; I love keeping up with the happenings of friends and family when I can’t see them in person.

Sometimes though, the sharing becomes a comparison game. We want the world to see and acknowledge our perfect spouses, houses, children and lives. There seems to be a deep need for recognition from people.

The Gospel of Matthew shows us another way.

In Matthew 28:1, the text says that, “After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.”

How would we react today at being referred to as “the other Mary” in an important news story?  Did the writer not know her last name, or did he just not care?

Was it because women didn’t matter much during that time?

While that could be the case, I don’t think it was.

Maybe omitting her last name was on purpose because her last name truly didn’t matter. The story was not about either of the women. It was about the Resurrected Christ.

In Matthew’s account, in ten short verses, these two women encountered angels, saw an empty tomb and then encountered a very much alive, Jesus. When they saw Him, “they clasped his feet and worshiped him.” Matthew 28:9b.

Jesus told them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” Matthew 28:10

Why would Jesus choose to appear to women first if they had no worth?

The Gospel shows us repeatedly that Jesus valued women and that women freely and openly worshiped Him.

Perhaps that humility is why He chose to appear to them first. When they saw Him, they immediately worshiped Him.

These two women literally got to be the first. They were clearly both known by Him and I’ve no doubt that they are now spending eternity with Him.

I suppose we have all felt like the “other Mary” at one time or another. We all know Mary Magdalene’s story. We know nothing about the “other Mary,” but we should be encouraged because the truth is that Jesus knew everything about her.

Another truth is, He knows your name and your story too and in the end, that’s all that matters. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 😊

Fig Tree Inspiration

Posted on by Wendy
We always have the choice between mourning for what was or celebrating what is.

About a month ago, we had some unseasonably warm weather. Everything started blooming. Then, we were slammed with a cold snap. For four nights, my hubby and I covered our tender hydrangeas. Unfortunately, we couldn’t cover our fig tree. It’s really big, but also very established and we felt like it would be ok.

It had already put out some nice big leaves. While the hydrangeas that we were able to cover had little brown spots on the ends of their leaves showing some damage, the fig leaves turned completely brown and withered. The hydrangeas bounced back fairly quickly, but our fig tree showed no sign of life for a long time.

I began to worry about it a little bit. Had the cold snap killed that mature tree?

Finally, I saw some signs of life, a few little green nodes. It was slow, but it finally started coming back. I removed most of the dead leaves, but a few were too high for me to reach. As I was examining it this week, I was amazed at all of the new green growth bursting around what looked completely dead. I had allowed myself to become discouraged because I couldn’t see signs of life.

But, that fig tree, with its established, deep root system, was at work beneath the surface. Life was still there and regeneration was going on even though I couldn’t see it.

As I looked at the withered leaves still hanging on the branches among the new bright green ones, I was reminded how easily we can get discouraged in our own cold and dark seasons. We too, sometimes believe that our prayers aren’t heard or that growth, regeneration and redemption aren’t possible.

But, God sometimes starts at our roots and the important, hard work that goes on, happens on the inside. That work and growth sometimes take a lot longer than we think it should. We wonder if change will ever occur, but then it does and life bursts forth, just like those tender brand new leaves.

I could mourn what was lost when I think how big the original leaves would have been without the cold snap.

Looking back and mourning what could have been is always a choice.

But, as I marvel at a tree that looked completely lifeless a couple of weeks ago, I choose to celebrate its life and new growth, so very thankful that it made it through a dark time. It reminds me that I should do the same during my own dark times. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

He is Still in the Boulder Moving Business

Posted on by Wendy
He is still in the boulder moving business.

I recently watched an Easter service where the pastor showed a picture of what the boulder probably looked like that sealed Jesus’ tomb. It was massive. Most internet searches say it would have weighed somewhere between one and two tons.

That photo sprang to mind when I later read Mark 16: 1-3: “When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. 2 Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb 3 and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?”

I marvel at their faith. They loved Jesus. They wanted to serve Him in the best way they knew how, which was anointing His body. They got up first thing in the morning, got what they had together and went to serve. There was no physical way they could move that stone, but they went anyway.

They brought what they had. They showed up and had faith God would too.

Their faith was rewarded.

“But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away.” Mark 16:4

Their stubborn desire to serve Jesus with the gifts that they had, gave them a front row seat to the greatest miracle ever bestowed on humankind. In Mark’s Gospel, they were the first to witness an empty tomb.

How often do we make excuses for not being able to serve? We claim that we don’t have enough time, talent, or money. Sometimes we don’t set out on a particular mission because we don’t think we can make a difference. It’s a dark world we live in. Just turn on the news. Can a handful of believers change anything? Is there even a point in trying? Should we just stay at home and pray for Jesus to return?

These three women give us our answer.

We serve a living God who is still in the stone moving business. He moved that boulder on the first Easter morning and He is still moving boulders.

Our job is not to doubt our abilities or focus on our lack of resources. Our job is to bring what we have and serve, no matter how big or small the mission may seem, remembering in God’s hands nothing is impossible. Three determined women reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 😊

Fruit Tree Lessons

Posted on by Wendy
God can use every bit of our stories.

My Daddy grew up farming. He was one of eight children and they barely got by. I’ve often heard him tell stories of the hard work he and his siblings did, out in the hot Georgia sun, plowing the fields with a mule. They ended up moving into town when he was in high school and his farming days were behind him. He joined the Navy and went on to follow several different career paths.

I suspect if you would have asked him when he was growing up if he ever had any intention of farming again, he would have laughed. Yet, he has always loved to grow things. He grows tomatoes every summer. I’ve seen him grow everything from figs and strawberries to cabbage and blueberries and always successfully.

Recently, my hubby and I wanted to plant some fruit trees. We planted in the fall when they all looked like sticks. There was no sign of life. Daddy told us how to plant them and how important it was to put straw around them. He warned us about the deer and while we knew he was right, we thought we had more time. We were wrong. The deer ate the very first leaf off of one of our fledgling apple trees. We heeded his advice and put some wire around them to protect them. He added pie pans to make noise in the wind.

The deer have left them alone.

When he asked me if we wanted him to fertilize them, I told him I would defer to his knowledge. He went ahead and fertilized them.

Last weekend, after a cold snap, I was delighted to see that our little orchard, which several months ago, showed no sign of life, was teeming with leaves and I was so very thankful for his guidance.

He told me that we could plant our tomatoes after Good Friday. I have no doubt, they too, will flourish.

I often marvel at how God uses our life experiences to help guide others along the way.

Daddy didn’t know it at the time, but he was learning valuable lessons in that Georgia heat of his youth, lessons that he now can pass on to his children and grandchildren.

In God’s economy, nothing is wasted.

So, take heart my friend. Whatever circumstance or situation that you find yourself in today, whether good or bad, exciting or mundane, beautiful or incredibly ugly, put it in God’s hands and let Him use it. In His hands we can find restoration, redemption and a peace that passeth all understanding. Some thriving fruit trees reminded me. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 😊

The Power of Prayer and Praise

Posted on by Wendy
Prayer and praise together are powerful.

I’m participating in an online Bible study on the books of Chronicles. They are the history of God’s relationship with His people. There are examples of both good and bad kings and lots of examples of the downright failure of humankind to stay faithful to God. King Jehoshaphat was one of the good kings and the account of one of his battles in 2 Chronicles, really stood out to me.

Some of his enemies had decided to fight him for no good reason and he went to God to beg for His intervention. He first praised God’s mightiness and faithfulness, by listing the many ways God had saved them before. Next, he openly acknowledged that they were powerless against the great armies that were coming against them. He said they don’t know what to do so they were asking God for help.

God answered the king through a prophet, “This is what the Lord says to you: Don’t be afraid or discouraged by this great army because the battle isn’t yours. It belongs to God! 16 March out against them tomorrow. Since they will be coming through the Ziz pass, meet them at the end of the valley that opens into the Jeruel wilderness. 17 You don’t need to fight this battle. Just take your places, stand ready, and watch how the Lord, who is with you, will deliver you, Judah and Jerusalem. Don’t be afraid or discouraged! Go out tomorrow and face them. The Lord will be with you.” 2 Chronicles 20:15-17

My favorite part was what happened next. They decided to trust God.

“21 After consulting with the people, Jehoshaphat appointed musicians to play for the Lord, praising his majestic holiness. They were to march out before the warriors, saying, “Give thanks to the Lord because his faithful love lasts forever!” 22 As they broke into joyful song and praise, the Lord launched a surprise attack against the Ammonites, the Moabites, and those from Mount Seir who were invading Judah, so that they were defeated.” 2 Chronicles 20:21-22

Since they trusted that God would provide, they went out singing and praising Him with both their voices and instruments. They didn’t even lift a sword.

The account made me ask myself about my own prayer and trust. When I take something to God in prayer, do I drop my anxiety and trust Him? Do I truly believe that He will deliver me like He has countless times before?

Later in the week, I needed to have a hard conversation. As I was praying about it, a song came on the radio about fighting on our knees. I could totally relate. But then, “I’ve Got Joy,” by CeCe Winans came on and I found myself singing to the top of my lungs. “I’ve got joy in the struggle. I’ve got peace in the storm…I’ve got joy cause I’ve got Jesus.”

I felt at perfect peace when I had that conversation. I was not the least bit surprised when it went well.

A biblical king reminded me to never forget the power of both prayer and praise. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Jesus Knows Your Name

Posted on by Wendy
We all have a part to play in kingdom work.

I recently heard a sermon where the pastor talked about the account in Matthew 26, where the woman pours very expensive perfume, Nard, on Jesus. While the disciples were appalled at what they considered a waste of precious resources, Jesus praised her.

“Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.” Matthew 26:13

The pastor pointed out that she has no name in Matthew’s Gospel. We learn in other accounts that her name is Mary, but in Matthew’s account she isn’t named, yet Jesus predicted that wherever the Gospel is preached, we would be talking about her selfless act. Over, two thousand years later, we are still talking about her.

Was the Gospel writer led by the Holy Spirit to know that humanity has a tendency to make idols of just about anything and so decided to leave her unnamed? We may never know.

In the end, it doesn’t matter whether or not we know her name. All that matters is that Jesus knows her name.

That sermon got me to thinking about the countless other people in the Bible who were doing kingdom work but weren’t given a name. There’s the woman at the well who may have been the first evangelist. There’s the boy who gave up his bread and fish to Jesus, all he had, and watched it feed thousands.

Are their stories any less powerful because they aren’t named?

There are the men walking to Emmaus. One of them is named and one was not. Was the encounter any less lifechanging for the traveler not named? Was he less of a disciple of the Gospel going forward?

What about the four friends who lowered their paralytic friend through a roof to get to Jesus? Jesus told them that their faith healed their friend. They too, weren’t named, yet they too, continue to serve as a powerful example of the power of faith.

In today’s society, we can bet the name of the boy with the fish and loaves would be plastered all over Facebook by his parents.

The four friends would likely be on Instagram or Tik-Tok.

We don’t like the idea of obscurity. We want the world to know when we do something we consider important. We crave the praise of others.

Yet, we worship a God whose kingdom has always been contrary to ours. It’s an upside-down concept to for us not get credit. We tend to forget that the only credit we should seek is the heavenly kind.

All of the countless unnamed people in the Bible, remind me that we each have a part to play in kingdom building and there truly are no small parts when we are working for Jesus. Whatever our gifts and talents are, we are called to use them generously, knowing that ultimately the only praise that really matters is getting to one day hear Jesus say: “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!” Matthew 25:23

Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 😊

His Creative Provision

Posted on by Wendy
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23

On Tuesday of this week, I complained to my hubby about being bored. Don’t get me wrong, I have lots going on. This season has been particularly busy for me, but I was longing for a creative project. Normally, in January, I get motivated to paint a room or re-do a piece of furniture. But, this January came and went and I hadn’t done anything creative.

The following day, I left work early to go and purchase flowers for centerpieces at an event I was coordinating the following evening. I labored over how many bunches to purchase to split between fourteen mason jars. I finally settled on five and headed home. I put them in big plastic pitchers with water until after dinner when I could work with them.

When the dishes were done, I spread all of the jars out on my kitchen table, cut off the plastic from the stems and got to work. I had recently read a book about flower arranging and I was trying to follow the author’s advice. At first, I cut the stems too long and then l cut three big blooms too short and had to toss them. At that point, I became a little frustrated thinking I should have bought one more bunch, but a little nudge told me to just keep working.

I did and I found myself really enjoying the process as I experimented with different textures and colors in different jars. No two stems were exactly alike, even if they were the same type of flower. I marveled, as I often do, at God’s seemingly endless love of the unique.

The time passed quickly and when I looked at my watch, almost two hours had gone by. At last, I stood back and to take a look at my finished work as a whole. I smiled as I realized no two jars were alike. When I looked over and saw the flowers and fillers left in the two pitchers, I broke out into a full grin.

Of course, there had been enough. Why was I always so quick to second guess my decisions? As I reflected on that thought for a moment, my “need to do something creative” conversation with my hubby sprang to mind. At that point, I chuckled and said a prayer of thanks.

God is always at work. He is always planning for what we need well before we even know we need it. He knew way before I did what a busy season this would be for me and the One who knit me together in my mother’s womb, knew I would still need a creative outlet in this season. I’m not sure why I was surprised that He created one for me.

If we look for Him, we will find Him. Sometimes I need reminding. Perhaps you do too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 😊